Football club closes training sessions over citizen journalism

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Championship football club Norwich City have resorted to private training sessions, blaming rapid online reporting due to the surge in ‘citizen journalism’.

Previously, fans could enjoy watching their team prepare for upcoming games at the club’s Colney Training Centre. However, access to the centre will be closed to the public on days leading up to fixtures from 16 August.

Club manager Peter Grant expressed anger that vital team information can be found on the internet almost instantaneously.

‘I’ve had managers say to me post-match ‘we knew you were doing this or that’ and I can’t have that’he told the club’s official website.

‘Last year when Earnie [Robert Earnshaw] was injured on the training pitch before a game it was on a website before I had got back to my desk, which isn’t acceptable,’he added.

Rick Waghorn, who covers the club on his website norwichcity.myfootballwriter.com, reported the story last week.

Waghorn said fans are sad to see training go behind closed doors, but on the whole are understanding of the club’s situation.

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‘We’ve had a good run. Hardly any clubs allow it anymore,’he said. ‘If that’s the price to pay for a ticket to the Premiership next year, so be it.”

Mark Armstrong, sports writer for the Norwich Evening News, said: ‘It’s fair enough to a certain extent, but if your team is good enough then it doesn’t matter. I can understand [Grant] might want to keep the opposition boss guessing. It’s a sign of the times, really.”